Aretas Blood

Who was Aretas Blood?

Aretas Blood played an important role in the manufacture of early American railroad steam locomotives.

Blood was born in Weathersfield, Vermont. At the age of 17, as railroads began to be built in the United States, he was apprenticed as a blacksmith. After a few years learning the trade, he moved to Lowell, Massachusetts, where he was hired by the Locks and Canals Machine Shop. 1849 brought a new title to Blood at a different foundry, when he took the position of "job hand" at the Essex Machine Shop.

At Essex, Blood manufactured locomotive parts. He built up enough of a cash reserve that he was able to purchase a share of the Manchester Locomotive Works when it opened in 1853. Blood took over the shop superintendent position at Manchester in 1857 when the original superintendent, O. W. Bayley, left the company.

It was Blood's opinion that the locomotives that Manchester produced were too light for the future needs of the railroads. When he took over in 1857, he quickly instigated more substantial locomotive construction at the shop. Through succeeding years, Blood acquired greater principal in the company until he was the majority owner.

Under Blood's tenure, Manchester purchased the fire engine manufacturing business of Amoskeag Locomotive Works in 1872. Blood died in 1897, but Manchester continued in his absence, building as many as 1,800 locomotives by 1901.